A MAN from Basingstoke is planning to take his grandchildren to Disney World after winning big on the EuroMillions.
Ray Bowen, 61, is now £131,584.90 richer after matching the five main numbers and one Lucky Star number in the EuroMillions draw on Friday, August 30.
Ray, a full-time carer who usually uses his own set of numbers, didn’t have time to input them before the draw deadline.
Racing against time before the 7.30pm cut off point to enter that night’s draw, he decided to buy, as it turns out, a very Lucky Dip.
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Ray said: "It was one of the best decisions I’ve made in ages,” joked Ray as he explained his last-minute dash for a winning ticket.
“My friends had come round for our weekly movie night and I was running late. I realised I hadn’t updated my account details and, as I’ve never missed a draw before and the clock was ticking, I just bought a EuroMillions Lucky Dip.
“We then watched a couple of movies and afterwards went straight to bed, without a second thought about the draw. The next morning, I saw a message on my National Lottery account. As I always check and double-check unexpected emails, I thought I’d better wait until the National Lottery line opened and call them to be on the safe side."
Ray explained how he "couldn't believe it" and double-checked to make sure.
He said: "After various checks the lady confirmed that I was a winner and that someone from The National Lottery would be in contact that afternoon. I couldn’t believe it and I felt a bit numb.
"I then had the call and then waited for everything to be processed. I was shaking. When I calmed down, the first people I called were my mum and dad."
Ray, a widower, is a carer to his three grandchildren, aged 11, 9 and 7 years. He was previously a motorway recovery driver and cared for the trio with his wife but, had to leave the role after very sadly losing her to cancer nearly two years ago, and now looks after the three children full-time.
To celebrate, Ray and his family went out for a meal to toast his newfound fortune and are planning a bigger celebration in the future.
Ray is planning to spend some of his winnings on a family holiday to Disney World in Florida, and then look at buying the house he currently rents.
Explaining what the win means to him, he said: "I told the grandchildren, only this year, that I wanted to save up and take them on a trip of a lifetime.
"I said it would take me a few years to save, but now we can go a lot sooner and get an upgrade.
"I also want to explore buying my house and have that security. I’m looking forward to enjoying not having to worry about bills. I already feel more relaxed about financial things and it feels good."
Ray bought his EuroMillions ticket via the National Lottery app. His winning numbers were 3, 24, 27, 33, 42 and the Lucky Star numbers were 4 and 6.
Readers can find out more at national-lottery.co.uk.
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